739 Responses to “october moonlight”

it’s Zana Briski’s birthday and she is nearly halfway to her fund-raising goal for her project “REVERENCE”. she has done a lot in her life to help others (filmed “Born into Brothels”, started the “Kids w Camera’s” project & more) so please help her by donating and/or sharing this link w others. thank you!

as Michael explained to you (i think) when i am talking focal length i am always talking FULL FRAME focal length….i.e. technically i have a 20 on my little GF1 but the actual field of view is a 40….so to my mind and what shows up in pictures is a 40 , not a 20…i have never used anything wider than a 24 FIELD OF VIEW lens…yes, your Canon is a full frame as is my Nikon d700 and the M9

yes, please keep up your drum beat for Zana…she was a student of mine a long time ago at Eddie Adams and her spirit was strong from the beginning…Born Into Brothels was a landmark project…i was surprised she had switched over to more natural history work, but i have no doubt that whatever she does , she will do it with grace and Reverence….

I have young teenagers in the family who are totally into photography – film and digital – and they are on me for direction and help. Certainly they are a bit too enamored with gear, starry-eyed over the latest and greatest exponential technological advancements, which I fear will just destroy their potential. So how do I begin with them?

Still not sure how to proceed but I am trying to do what I wish someone had done for me – show them great work beyond the usual “perfect” chuff that surrounds us everyday. Where would you start? What photo books are good primers to open up the mind? (they are already getting The Americans and Divided Soul for Christmas). How else can I help them? (And I am hoping they might show me a thing or two – fresh eyes). Hmmm, give them an assignment? “Show me your world” (playing on Zana’s work a bit).

Absolutely give them an assignment or two (or three!). Nothing worse than having the urge to shoot but no focus. Giving them something to look forward to for a few days with the promise of a group critique at the end. I found that was very helpful to me in the beginning.

An inexpensive and approachable book I got when I first started looking into books is The Photographers Eye by John Szarkowski, a collection of 172 photographs based on an exhibit at MoMA in 1964. I like his definition of 5 characteristic “issues” of a photograph: the Thing Itself, The Detail, the Frame, Time, and Vantage Point.

From the book blurb:
“Celebrated works by such masters as Cartier-Bresson, Evans, Steichen, Strand, and Weston are juxtaposed with vernacular documents and even amateur snapshots to analyze the fundamental challenges and opportunities that all photographers have faced. Szarkowski, the legendary curator who worked at the Museum from 1962 to 1991, has published many influential books. But none more radically and succinctly demonstrates why–as U.S. News & World Report put it in 1990–“whether Americans know it or not,” his thinking about photography “has become our thinking about photography.””

Thanks for that link. I have seen all of those photographs, but not the videos. Behind here in Lexington, KY, where Sam Started and took so many photographs gives me a special appreciation for his work.

And, of course, there is that last photograph in the diary set that was taken by someone we are all terribly fond of, I believe…

Eva, Thodoris, Michael and Andrew … you are all too cool. Good ideas and leads.

Thodoris, I won’t know how the 4×5 turned out until I get the film developed … but everything was good except for a slight delay with airport security when I was already late/running (literally) for my flight. But it did give me an additional idea for a body of work I was already contemplating with the 4×5. I found though that during the trip I fell back on the old 35 Canonet more often than not .. surprise, surprise :)) I shot hundreds of 35mm slides at the OBX Avalon pier in three days, just a blast, and I got to be friends with many fisherman including Jimmy from Boone, N.C. who was intent on saving my sinful soul. He just wouldn’t give up, must have appreciated the challenge. Life, politics, god and fishing. To be honest, I don’t care how the chromes turn out (well, okay, a little bit :)) Damn I miss the Outer Banks!

Thanks for the Sam Abell link…I was visually consumed by images I haven’t seen for a long time.

As for previous conversation, lens choice is so critical to photography and individual style. It should also remain simple. It is my personal opinion that the simplicity of a few good primes, will inevitably produce better images, knowing your field of view in advance, lets your mind focus on the exposure, the composition and above all the moment! Your camera will become faster, lighter and less obtrusive. I started out with primes, lost my way for awhile, and returned to what I know best.

I was pleased to read David’s thoughts on the 50mm, simply because I have not removed mine all year. I also encourage anyone new to the field of photography to start out on a prime lens, learn to move first, composition is a powerful thing.

And Tom you could take it even further. For Christmas give them a certificate for a workshop by you on how to shoot a story. You could do it over their Christmas Break. Follow DAH’s format–it works great. Although I shifted a bit in timing–I have them shoot in the morning and afternoon light and we meet in the afternoons to critique. They will learn a lot just from shooting and sharing. If I remember correctly Charles P is teaching kids photography and we were talking about this a few weeks ago under advance warning I think. Have fun! And you will learn more than they do guaranteed.

On a different note…
this is the funniest thing (in the cartoon/stereotype kind of funny) I’ve seen lately… we’re in the center of Athens and the car in front of us claims to be part of the embassy of Pakistan on a piece of paper taped on the place where its license plates should be… (shot with a cell-phone)

Tom, going against the grain, I’d guess that the best way to ruin them on photography forever would be to give them photography related learning tools for X-mas. Gear, maybe, particularly if you can find a camera with lots of shiny lights or sparkles or face book access or something not boring to the teenage mind. But odds of them pursuing an art or photojournalism career are probably better if you just forbid them from pursuing photography and try to push them into accounting or law instead.

All, more good ideas. Mucho thanks. Lee, it’s a good idea but I’m not shaving my head ;-)) MW, I KNOW you are right! Jared, great link. Making it quick ’cause internet is in and out in the middle of the first big storm of fall.

i have tried zooms…do not like them…they SEEM like they should be good and they make SENSE, but in reality you are zooming when you should be shooting or moving your feet or body….plus they are big…too big…obtrusive…heavy….slow…not sharp…i agree with Jeremy…go prime time….

Here’s what I think: when it comes to lenses, a photographer should follow his own gut. If that gut says stick to primes, then stick to it. If it says go zoom, zoom. In the end, it is the picture that matters and there can be no doubt that many photographers who use primes only do excellent work and so do many photographers who shoot with zooms.

Maybe one day, if I ever get on top of things economically, I will try out your theory and buy a new airplane and a whole bunch of primes and test it out. Right now, I would be lost without my zooms.

Herve;)
Translation : “Fuck Zooms”…
Zooms are for LAZY “pros”…
Great for a boring wedding, family portrait session, engagement photos , quincinieras, highschool sports and proms and uninspired extreme crapiness :)
Stay away from zooms like fast food..
Actually “zooms” are “fast food”..
Bad taste, little of everything and nothing at all at the same time..
Love us, honor us, respect us.. Stay away from zoom lenses..
They are as bad as alcohol right before a ling distance trip..
Zooms should be illegal

agreed Bill, when it comes to ANYTHING “a photographer should follow his own gut”…and of course it is only the picture that counts…that is my mantra and why i rarely discuss tech stuff here…most of it useless for the reason you so correctly state…i was simply answering a question from our friend Herve who asked if i had ever tried zooms….i have, do not prefer them, and gave my reasons why… i am sure many great pictures have been taken with zooms….just not as many as with primes :)

@ ALL: (Against Zoom Lenses)
Yes as Panos says, get away from zooms, I’d rather get one of these PinHoles, made for 4/3 cameras.
Not so expensive, 11mm, aperture: f/128.
I know, that we can do pretty much the same with PhotoShop, LightRoom and all that tech stuff, but this is real…

i suppose because of my travels, many folks often ask me ” David, what is your favorite place?”….i never really have an answer and usually mumble something silly about wherever i am is my “favorite” or whatever…however, i do easily come up with my least favorite places which seem to pop into my head when asked about my favorite places…today connections to Oaxaca just did not work out as i might have preferred and i will spend much of my day at the Mexico City airport…how do you think i rate that one?

well, all part of the deal…i am now up at 4am nuking coffee in the microwave at the Econolodge motel at the Norfolk Va airport where i arrived late last night after a great session at NatGeo…i do have nice view of the parking lot….get the picture? so, i have now 6am flight and no more time to chat here although i would much rather do that than be thinking about my favorite place as i stand in the security line and wonder why in the world i double knotted my hiking boot strings….i swear i am always the man at the airport who looks like someone who has never traveled before…i am sure of it…

ok, off i go to Mexico…do not know when i can get back here…yes, downtime Mex City and IF there is a good net connection , i will spend the day right here in the comfort of Burn comments…ahhhh, the small pleasures of international travel….

oh yes, i should note that for sure Oaxaca City is one of my favorite places in the world…hard to beat mezcal and mole on the Zocalo…best sidewalk cafe shooting on the planet and just the best place to BE…so good that a bit of travel suffering is just part of the deal…

rushing a bit now, but i see we posted simultaneous…ahhhh, you have seen the light..literally…nice work amigo…i promise you , you will never ever again go back to zooms unless you just have to…a prime 35 1.4 is to be cherished…have fun…gotta go…

My 24mm (36mm equivalent) hardly leaves the camera,it hasn’t left the camera for the family project I’m shooting at the moment though!

But sometimes in clubs the 12-24mm comes in handy. I just leave it at 24mm (for 90% of pics); but when you get stuck into the middle of a mosh the ability to go wider can be a God-send. Mind you; I haven’t used if for at least 3 months! :-)